Sundance Goes for a Ride

Over the weekend I pulled Sundance, the former ranch/trail horse out for more desensitizing.  I haven't done too much with him lately, due to the cold weather and the barn being busier.  Saturday he got lunged then I used clippers on him for the first time.  He snorted a pulled back a bit, but was actually ok with them on his muzzle, as long as I was on his left side.  As soon as I switched to the off side, he'd pull back again.  We went pretty slow, and he got lots of cookie, and he let me clip his muzzle and part of the long hairs under his chin and head.

I hate you so much right now

Sunday was the big day.  My BO and I turned him out then rubbed him down all over with towels.  He wasn't so sure about them around his head, but put up with our shenanigans. We then tacked him up with BO's western saddle and a plain snaffle.  His owner TN has either ridden him in a hackamore or curb bit and said he can be fussy with his mouth. 

I guess he kinda liked it?

BO wanted to lunge him in the side reins (we're guessing his first time in them) so we put them on super loose.  He's way out of shape so she just did maybe 10 minutes of walk trot, switching directions a lot.  He's not really sure about lunging on a line, and changing directions was a hard concept to grasp. But he didn't protest about the side reins, and you could tell his issues were from not understanding what we were asking.  He really, really, really wants to please and be a good boy. It's obvious no one has taken time with him to let him understand and figure out he's not going to be hurt.

Once he seemed fine lunging, I hopped aboard for his first ride since July or August. There was no way I could get on him from the ground so BO held him while I used the mounting block.  He was a bit reactive to my seat and leg at first but settled in as we went along.  He goes really well off voice command, so all I had to do was cluck to get him to trot. Again, because he's so out of shape, I only did 10mins of walk with a few trot circles each direction.  I played around with trying to get him on the bit at the walk, and he actually started looking for the contact.  He got stuffed with cookies and was told he was the bestest pony.

OMG tiny human!

His torture wasn't over yet.  My BO's boss brought out his kids and grandkids for pony rides about an hour later.  Once the pony rides were over the kids went up and down the aisle petting the ponies. Poor Sundance had to suffer through having a two year old try and pet him.  He loves getting his head rubbed, but only if you move slow and by people he knows. The tiny human trying smack pet his nose was just too much.

How to be a Normal Pony

One of the horses in the barn is a former pack horse/ranch horse from Wyoming.  His owner, TN, is the contractor who built the barn and is friends with the BOs. TN and some friends owned a hunting guide outfit in Wyoming to take people into the wilderness and had 25-30 trail/pack horses and mules.  When they sold the outfit, TN kept Sundance, his favorite horse and brought him home to Oregon.

We also figured out how to take selfies.  Obviously very important

We don't know much about Sundance's history.  He's in his teens, probably a QH or QH cross.  I call him the Wyoming Warmblood. He's big, probably 16.3 and heavy boned and muscled.  He's obviously had a hard life and is very wary of people. One hind leg has a scar that looks like he was roped. He's also got some arthritis issues.  When he first came, he wouldn't step on the mats in the barn aisle, was nervous going into a stall, wouldn't eat treats, and it took him a while to figure out grain. You had to move slow and quietly around him or else he'd pull away from you.  We think he'd always been turned out in a herd in Wyoming and maybe had never been in a barn or indoor arena.  It was almost impossible to catch him once we turned him out for the summer.

We can also stand to get our foot soaked when we have an abscess. After snorting at the water once, he stood stock still the whole time. So proud!

TN had knee surgery at the beginning of the year so Sundance has sat for the most part. He has ridden him a handful of times, and every time Sundance has been super wigged out.  But BO and I have started working with him to teach him how to be a normal pony. He's really come out of his shell and wants to be a good boy.  He's started nickering at me, but that's probably because I come armed with cookies and carrots for him which he's figured out are amazing.  But he can now crosstie, wear a blanket, pick up all four feet, and we've started learning how to lunge on a lunge line. He's decided getting his head brushed is the best thing ever. Seriously, he's so much better about it than Peebs, its sad. You still have to move slow and not spook him, but he comes back to you much quicker than he did before.  He's also figured out he can canter in the indoor arena, and cantered four times when I lunged him on Monday.  It used to be almost impossible to get him to canter at all, let alone that much.  Hopefully BO and I will get on him sometime in the next couple weeks to see what he's like under saddle.

Blankets are scary